The goals of Saul and Griezmann give the victory to Atlético, who takes revenge on Borussia

A great game of the rojiblancos ended with three points for the locals thanks to the goals of Saul and Griezmann

Atlético de Madrid beat Borussia Dortmund, with whom he adjusted accounts with the goals of Saúl Ñíguez and Antoine Griezmann, whom he devoured at home, a decisive aspect of the game and which he equalized in the leadership of Group A of the Champions League. to complete a reaffirming European night.

Incidents: Match corresponding to the fourth day of Group A of the Champions League, played in the Metropolitan Wanda before some 63,000 spectators.

While still not dependent on himself to reach the top, he still needs a German stumble because of the particular difference in his direct confrontations in case of a tie to points, he looks closely at the pass to the knockout stage, which could be the next day if he wins Monaco or Bruges does not beat Dortmund.

Today, the plan was perfect. Atlético understood the duel from different registers. The first, waiting for the backlash, that skill of stealing the ball and the quick exit that both like and well handled the rojiblanco team, who did not mind giving possession to his opponent, within that proposition of the match.

A section that seemed to Dortmund, with the weight of the ball, but almost always in the bottomless sectors of the game, without connecting once with neither Marco Reus nor with the striker Paco Alcácer; an appearance without more, because each of the occasions, up to four, of the first twenty minutes were of the same color: rojiblanco.

Saúl ahead of his people
It did not have the forcefulness then, so much in the sense of the power of the blow as of the effectiveness, that demands a duel of this type. Each shot, four, three of them from Correa, slept tame in the hands of the goalkeeper … until the minute 34, when he dismounted his rival, from Juanfran’s throw-in to Saúl’s goal.

In between, Kalinic disputed and won the second play, Saul opened on the left to Filipe Luis, with a desert ahead to the center that missed Correa and who came from behind Saul to connect with the 1-0, surpassed the goalkeeper and overcome Akanji, whose hurried clearance did not separate the ball from the final destination.

The goal unleashed unstoppable Atletico, who launched the second part of the plan and that overflowed without discussion to his adversary for a quarter of an hour in which the Dortmund was a mirage, a team that had enough to resist, overwhelmed by the push local and supported by his goalkeeper: Roman Burki.

Without it, or with something more effective, the difference would have been greater. With him, the distance to the intermission remained as it was, short from all perspectives, because he counted a handful of occasions the Athletic one, of Giménez (injured later, one more low in the center of the defense counting already the initials of Savic and Godín, and replaced at the break by the youthful Montero), Thomas, Griezmann, Filipe … And a penalty not whistled on Saúl.

All concentrated in a ten minutes of imposing version of the Athletic one, irrepressible for the German block, that felt the rest like a vital breath, of recomposition, of relief because it had crossed its worse moment with a single goal against, still inside a match that could perfectly well have already escaped.

The Athletic sentence and take the victory
He did not do it then, reintegrated to a new encounter around the locker room, faced another Atlético, again more content, again in the original plan, again waiting for his opponent to counterattack, but again, too, in the match he wanted, with another chance, from Correa, who lacked a little more precision.

He did not alter the possession of his opponent. There are always risks and unforeseen events, such as Montero’s slip, which Alcácer picked up. Its center finished it off with the Guerreiro clouds. It was the only occasion in the whole duel – he did not shoot once at goal – from Dortmund, sentenced in a perfect counter, initiated by Gelson Martins, enhanced by Thomas and culminated by Griezmann. An incontestable 2-0.